|
As a certified personal trainer in NYC, one of the most frequent excuses I hear for people not exercising is “I don’t have time”. I know, time is short and family and work commitments can leave you very little quality time for the other things you know you should be doing; like exercise! I think part of the problem is that, for years, the fitness industry has worked in one-hour time segments. Group exercise classes and typical personal training sessions all last an hour which is quite a hefty chunk out of your day. The reality is that you don’t have to train for an hour at a time to get fitness benefits. In fact forty, thirty or even twenty minutes of meaningful exercise can be beneficial. Do shorter workouts mean fewer benefits? Absolutely not. If you focus on quality rather than quantity, you may even find that shorter workouts are more productive than simply going through the motions for an hour or longer. In running terms, doing lots of easy but long exercise is called junk mileage as this type of training does very little for your fitness. As well as saving your valuable leisure time, other benefits of short workouts include: Less chance of getting bored Increased post-exercise fat burning Increased mental focus More free time Examples of short workouts These are just a few of the workouts I use with my clients who are short of time but still want to exercise. Remember to scale the workouts to suit your individual needs and get expert instruction from a certified personal trainer if you are unsure how to perform any of the exercises. 1.5 pullups, 10 push ups, 15 squats, 20 jumping jacks See how many sets of this sequence you can do in 20 minutes. Rest when you need to but try and do as much as you can. If 20 minutes seems too long, do 15 or even 10 minutes. A great total-body workout. 2.Out and back run Set out for an easy run. Run for exactly ten minutes. Stop for a moment to catch your breath and then run back the exact same way but try and run back as fast as you can. 3.Barbell complex A complex is a series of exercises performed back to back. This complex can also be performed with a pair of dumbbells, kettle bells or a sand bag. Do five repetitions of each exercise and then rest 1-2 minutes on completion of the back squats. Perform 3-5 sets in total for a great, short workout. Dead lifts Hang clean Front squat Shoulder press Back squat. 4.Prisoner burpee challenge When it comes to short and effective workouts, this one gets a lot done in a short time and requires no equipment and very little space. To perform a burpee, stand with your hands by your sides, squat down and place your hands on the floor, jump your feet back into the pushup position, do a single pushup, jump your feet back up to your hands and then leap into the air. That’s one rep. 20 burpees Rest a few seconds 19 burpes Rest a few seconds 18 burpees Rest a few seconds Continue dropping one rep until you reach 1 burpee This workout is against the clock so do your best to finish it as quickly as you can. If you like, you can omit the press up and/or jump or start with a lower number of burpees e.g. 12. So there you have it – four certified personal trainer-approved workouts that will help get you fit in as little as 20 minutes! Don’t let time be an excuse for not exercising – getting fit and healthy really doesn’t have to take hours and hours. Author Bio Mark Darco is a professional personal trainer with 15 years experience and has worked with hundreds of clients. He has successfully completed multiple certifications and continues to provide fitness training to clients of all ages in the NYC area.
Related Articles -
Personal fitness trainer, FItness trainer NYC,
| 
